Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!? - Volume 2 - Chapter 5

Winners, Losers, and Overtime

Sunday, May 10th

“H-Huh...?”

Koutarou woke up as the victory ceremony for the obstacle marathon was beginning. Some time had passed since he’d passed out, and the scenery was now dyed orange by the evening sun.

“You’re finally awake...”

As Koutarou fully opened his eyes, he saw a pouting Sanae. She was in a bad mood after waiting for him to wake up for so long.

“Sanae... Huh? Wait, what happened to the obstacle marathon?! Where am I?!”

Koutarou jumped up and looked around. He was in the emergency medical tent next to the sports festivals headquarters. Despite its name, it wasn’t outfitted like a hospital and its “medical” value was pretty limited. It was just a standard outdoor tent with a blue vinyl sheet laid out so people could rest. Apart from Koutarou, there were two others lying in the tent: Theia and Kiriha. The staff had left the three of them there on their own when they were called to the eighth obstacle.

“It was over a long time ago. You passed out and retired just before the tenth obstacle.”

“Th-Then who won?! Was it Theia?! Or Kiriha-san?! Who was it?!”

Koutarou pointed at the two unconscious girls as he demanded to know the results of the competition. He wasn’t asking for the results of the obstacle marathon so much as he was the rankings for the residents of room 106.

“Neither. It was us and Yurika.”

“What...?”

Sanae’s answer left Koutarou dumbfounded. It was an outcome he never could’ve imagined.

Me, Sanae, and Yurika won...?! But how?! I dropped out of the race!

“Wh-What does this mean? How did it come to me and Yurika winning?”

Unable to comprehend the situation, Koutarou shook Sanae’s shoulders.

“C-C-Calm down!”

“How could I possibly calm down?!”

Koutarou kept shaking Sanae. Having given up on running away, Sanae tried her best to answer him.

“Th-Theia and Kiriha knocked each other out in a fist fight. Though they got a special award from the judges, th-they were unconscious and counted as out of the race. After that, Harumi and Yurika tied. So you, me, and Yurika will end up taking points from Theia and Kiriha.”

“W-Wait a minute, Sanae! You’re saying that Sakuraba-senpai and Yurika won?!”

Koutarou was so surprised that he stopped shaking Sanae for a moment, but he soon started shaking her at twice the speed. He simply couldn’t believe that Harumi and Yurika had won.

“Heee-eeey, K-Koooutaaaroouuu, stoooop...!”

“What do you mean?! Explain yourself right now!”

“If you want to me explain then stop shaking me, you idiot!”

A first aid kit fell on Koutarou. It was Sanae’s Poltergeist powers at work.

“O-Oooooww!”

The corner of the first aid kit hit him square in the head. Because of the impact, he let go of Sanae to hold on to his head.

“Phew, jeez...”

“D-Don’t be so reckless...”

“You’re the one being reckless! Seriously...”

Finally free from Koutarou, Sanae floated up into the air, put both of her hands on her hips, and puffed up her cheeks indignantly. Only then did she take it upon herself to explain everything.

“Well, everyone was slowed down by the minefield, right? And most of the leaders had to retire.”

“Yeah.”

“During that time, Harumi and Yurika caught up and won the race.”

Thanks to the minefield at the eighth obstacle, the pace of the majority of the competitors slowed down to a crawl. Lots of participants tried to rush through it, but the most of them failed and had to drop out.

But by the time Harumi and Yurika got there, most of the mines had already been detonated and they were able to cross without any problems. As a result, the minefield ended up helping them out quite a bit.

“B-But even then, those two making that kind of comeback is just...”

“Instead of doubting me, why don’t you just watch the victory ceremony?”

Sanae pointed out of the tent, but Koutarou was still in disbelief. Beyond the exit was a podium surrounded by a crowd. In order to get a better look, he jumped out of the tent.

“Oh...”

On top of the podium were Harumi and Yurika, just as Sanae had said.

“And the winners are the knitting society and cosplay society, despite both being liberal arts interest societies! Congratulations! Well done!”

The principal’s excited voice boomed through the speakers. Harumi and Yurika blushed as they were being praised by the people around them. As they were both rather introverted, they were unused to this kind of thing. But as the principal handed them the trophy, they both smiled at each other.

“Th-They really won...”

“See? I told you so.”

“I can’t believe it...”

“Yeah, you and everyone else.”

Sanae shrugged. It didn’t matter how little Koutarou believed the principal congratulating the two girls on top of the podium. It didn’t make the least bit of difference whether he actually believed it or not. Those two girls really won.

“...Oh well, in the end it all worked out.”

“You could say that.”

Harumi was on the podium and Koutarou had won against the invaders. It was the perfect outcome for him.

I wonder if god noticed how hard she was working for it... Isn’t that great, Senpai?

Thinking of it like that made the results a little easier to accept. Koutarou stared at the two standing on top of the podium with a smile. They were proudly holding on to the trophy and smiling themselves.

“...I-It didn’t all work out...”

“Landlord-san?!”

That was when Shizuka suddenly appeared in front of Koutarou, blocking his view of the podium. Her whole body was covered in black powder and her hairstyle now looked like an afro.

“Where’s the idiot who planted mines at the eighth obstacle?!”

The reason she looked like that was of course because she had been caught up in several of the explosions at the eighth obstacle. Even though the mines didn’t actually harm anyone, getting caught in the blasts had left her sooty and singed. She looked like she’d just barely escaped a fire. It was so bad that Koutarou couldn’t tell it was Shizuka until he heard her voice.

“Satomi-kun! Nothing good will come from hiding it from me!”

Shizuka was worse for wear, but her eyes were burning with rage. Her anger was fierce, and she approached Koutarou menacingly, breathing heavily with each step.

“O-Over there! She’s sleeping in the emergency medical tent!”

Overwhelmed by Shizuka’s looming aura, Koutarou told her where Theia was. He didn’t have any intention of hiding the truth from Shizuka, and he wasn’t confident he could hide it from her even if he wanted to.

“So she’s over there?!”

Shizuka cracked her knuckles.

She’s dead. Theia is so dead...

Koutarou could hear Theia’s lifespan shorten with every knuckle Shizuka cracked. Shizuka left the frightened Koutarou behind and approached the tent with slow, heavy footsteps.

“Forgive me, Tulip.”

Even though he knew Theia was in danger, Koutarou found himself unable to move. That was just how scary Shizuka was. Besides, he was still angry at her too.

“No, I won’t forgive you.”

As Koutarou was apologizing, someone else appeared in front of him.

“Mackenzie?”

“And it’s not just me.”

Kenji stood before Koutarou, followed by three large guys. He wasn’t in much better shape than Shizuka. His face and pure white tuxedo were now pitch black. His hair was a mess too.

“Hey, first-year brat!”

“I’ve been dying to meet you...”

“Gottsan desu!”

It was none other than the upperclassmen from the rugby, judo, and sumo clubs. Like Shizuka and Kenji, they too were pitch black and could only be told apart by their distinct uniforms. If they had been wearing gym clothes like everyone else, they would have been indiscernible from each other.

“Well, you see, Kou. These upperclassmen wanted to talk to you.”

Kenji grinned as he cleaned his glasses with a handkerchief. They were about as dark as the smile on his face.

“Uhhhhh... Wh-What can I help you with, Senpais?”

They couldn’t have...

A cold shiver ran down Koutarou’s back. Kenji appearing with these guys could only mean one thing.

“We wanted to thank you for what you did back at the start.”

“Since we’ve already thanked Glasses-kun who had nothing to do with it, it’d be unfair if we didn’t thank you too, right?”

“Gottsan desu!”

“I... I knew it!”

Koutarou panicked.

To think Mackenzie would reconcile with these people to work together...

The reason Kenji and the three upperclassmen had been able to come to an understanding was because of the minefield. In order to escape, they had no choice but to work together, so the four of them developed a sense of solidarity.

“S-Save me, pleb! Use everything in your might to protect me!”

“Tulip?!”

At that moment, Theia, on the verge of crying, jumped at Koutarou. He was startled, but was somehow able to catch her small body. The frightened Theia escaped from Koutarou’s arms and swiftly hid behind him.

“Sh-She’s coming! Shizuka is coming! Fight her, Koutarou! My life is in danger!”

“What?!”

Koutarou turned to look at the tent just as Shizuka was coming out from it. Her eyes were still burning with anger, and she approached Koutarou and Theia, one slow step at a time.

“I see... Satomi-kun, in the end you’re covering for that girl...”

“Wh-What’s with this pressure?!”

Shizuka’s eyes narrowed. Throwing daggers was an understatement. Theia had hidden behind Koutarou by her own accord, but Shizuka now considered Koutarou an enemy.

“Go on and fight, pleb! I’ll turn you into nobility! So die for my sake!”

“I refuse! Don’t involve me in this!”

“No! I don’t want to suffer alone! It’s only natural for a vassal to live and die with his master!”

“I’m not your vassal!”

“At this point it doesn’t matter if you are or not! Let’s suffer together!”

“C-Curse you, Tulip!”

“Ohohoho...”

Koutarou and Theia were desperate. They knew just how scary Shizuka really was when she was angry. They had a better chance of winning a fist fight against a tank. Because of that, Koutarou didn’t want to get involved no matter what, but Theia didn’t want to go down alone.

“...As you can tell, this is what he’s like, Senpais.”

“I see. I get it, Glasses-kun. Let me apologize for misunderstanding you.”

“Curse you! Why are you pretending like you aren’t popular after all? That hurts our pride more than anything!”

“Gottsan desu!”

Staring at Koutarou and Theia arguing, the three upperclassmen rekindled their solidarity and their eyes gleamed as they got ready to fight. They too acknowledged that Koutarou and Theia were enemies. Like Shizuka, they approached, one purposeful step at a time.

“We’ve been unfair to you, Glasses-kun. We’ll let you get even later, but right now we’re going to punish the insolent brat right in front of us!”

“I’ll help you.”

“Well said, Glasses-brat! To think there was someone like you among the good looking people...”

“Right now we’re all pitch black. Good looks don’t matter.”

“Gottsan desu!”

“Well said, Glasses-brat! I like you after all!”

“Prepare yourselves, Satomi-kun, Theia-san! We’ll have you pay for all the trouble you’ve caused!”

Kenji, Shizuka, and the three large upperclassmen circled around Koutarou and Theia. They were beyond the point of pleading or negotiation.

So this is it... Looks like I have no choice!

As the five of them closed in, Koutarou finally made up his mind.

“We’re running, Tulip!”

“Y-Yeah!”

Koutarou pulled on Theia’s hand and took off.

“Kou! Wait right there!”

“After them! Don’t let them get away again!”

“Gottsan desu!”

“Mackenzie-kun, cut off their escape path!”

Of course, the others were hot on their heels.

“Pleb, become my decoy! In return I’ll make sure not to step on you starting tomorrow!”

“No way! I don’t care if you step on me, so you be the decoy!”

With the two of them running and the other five chasing right after, the obstacle marathon entered overtime.

“What idiots...”

“Don’t say that. It was Theia-dono’s way of trying to be considerate.”

Sanae and Kiriha stood by the medical tent, watching Koutarou and the rest still running.

“Trying to be considerate? That’s a lie.”

“No one was injured or killed, right?”

“That’s true, but... it was obvious Shizuka would get angry if she did something like that. How could she not get that?”

“That princess hates losing. She did it despite knowing what would happen.”

The mines Theia had used were essentially flashbangs meant to disorient, so injuries rarely happened. A light burn or an afro was the worst that could happen. On top of that, Yurika had used her healing magic as she passed by the eighth obstacle, reducing the injuries even more. Of course, nobody noticed Yurika helping.

“She should have just been more clever about it, like you.”

“What on earth do you mean?”

“Don’t play dumb. I already know. Everyone falling at the start was your doing, right?”

“Why, I have no idea what you’re talking about...”

Based on what had happened, Sanae felt like Kiriha keeping a good lead for most of the race was the most suspicious thing of all. However, Kiriha warded off those doubts with a smile. If Kiriha was the culprit, she wouldn’t leave any evidence behind.

“...As I thought, you really are the most troublesome one.”

“How rude. I only want to become Koutarou’s lover. We’ll be able to create a happy family together.”

“You barefaced liar, that’s not what you’re thinking at all... Jeez, what’s with everyone today?”

Koutarou and Theia were being chased around, Kiriha was looking on with a smile, and Yurika and Harumi were still on top of the podium. So many strange things happened today that the ghost, Sanae, looked the most normal one there.

“Heehee, that really hurts.”

“I wish you could understand why I’m concerned as the rational person here. I swear...”

As Sanae complained, Koutarou and Theia ran past in front of her.

“H-Hey, pleb! I actually still have one more mine!”

“Stop it, Tulip! If you use that, you’ll definitely be killed!”

“It’s better than being caught right now!”

“Stooooop! Use your head!”

Why is Koutarou hogging all the fun?

Sanae was going on about being the responsible one, yet she was also unhappy about being left out. 

But even as Sanae was pouting about being left out, there were those who had a keen eye on her.

“Take a look at that! I can’t believe it! I’ve never seen a ghost this dense and stable before!”

“Do you’ll think she’ll fetch a high price if we catch her?!”

They were two figures in the corner of the schoolyard, pointing a strange device that looked like a speed gun at Sanae. They seemed to be taking some kind of readings, but they were jumping for joy at the results.

“Yeah, we’ll be billionaires! We can kiss being poor goodbye!”

“We did it, Aniki!”

They had been following Sanae around ever since they’d learned of her existence a few days ago. In other words, the glances Koutarou had felt the past few days wasn’t someone watching him, but someone watching Sanae.